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Walking the "Four Corners"

I have recently become obsessed with morning routines. Not necessarily practicing one (although I'm thinking about it), but hearing about what others do. One of Tocci's firm leaders has a morning practice that is a routine for spontaneity. He walks the "four corners" of our building, to connect with whoever is in the office. He doesn't know who he will spend time with or what they will talk about. Sometimes the content of the conversation is the value-add. Most of the value (I'm guessing) is connecting with people overtime. Like many other leadership practices, "walking the four corners" can be used at all levels and positions. As I started to think about it more, "walking the four corners" creates two daily or weekly practices for project BIM Leads:

Virtual Four Corner

Block out 15-20 minutes to navigate the model without intent. Wander around. See what you find. Does something look good? Take a screen shot and forward it to your team! Does something look wrong? Dig in further, ask someone, and clean in up. Although we often have designated periods of time for QAQC, it is always better to fix issues before someone else finds them. Imagine if everyone on your team did this each day or even each week!

Physical Four Corners

Block out 20-30 minutes to walk the jobsite, colo space, or just around your project team. See what people are working on, what challenges they are having, and how they are doing. Maybe there are opportunities for the model to help. Maybe there are problems with the model you can help out with. Or maybe you're just building relationships with team members that will make the BIM implementation more successful overall. For project BIM Leads: can you see adopting either of these practices? What else are you (or should you be) doing daily or weekly? For Project and VDC Managers: what practices do you encourage (or require) your modelers to do daily or weekly?Similar Posts"Spinach in Your Teeth" TeamThree Rules for Innovation Teams

2 comments:

Great post. I think that this is an awesome suggestion both in digital environment as well as the phsyical environment. Yet I think you can expand the idea from just walking around the model to looking at the entire BIM Enchilada and checking schedules, layout sheets, and other BIM related but not necessarily model related elements.

I really like your posts they give me, a BIM/VDC manager a different perspective, and I really appreciate that.

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About

I am the Director of Service Design + Strategy at Tocci Building Companies, overseeing VDC implementation, design management, integrated project delivery, and professional services. I have played a key role in innovative projects within Tocci and across construction industry, including the award-winning Autodesk AEC Headquarters IPD project.